SpaceX prices record $75 billion IPO at $135 a share, making Elon Musk the world's first trillionaire
Elon Musk's SpaceX priced its blockbuster initial public offering at $135 per share on Thursday, raising $75 billion and securing a $1.77 trillion valuation — instantly propelling him past the trillion-dollar net-worth threshold.
The pricing
SpaceX priced 555.56 million shares at $135 each in the largest U.S. initial public offering ever. The $75 billion raised eclipsed the previous record of $25.6 billion set by Saudi Aramco in 2019 ($33.2 billion in inflation-adjusted terms). The company disclosed the price just after 3 p.m. EDT on June 11 through a free-writing prospectus filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, followed by a press release half an hour later, breaking with the custom of waiting until after markets close. Shares are set to begin trading on the Nasdaq on Friday under the ticker SPCX, with the company ranking seventh among U.S.-listed firms.
- Pricing meeting concludes; price set at $135 per share via free-writing prospectus
- SpaceX issues press release announcing the IPO price
- Shares expected to begin trading on Nasdaq under ticker SPCX
A new wealth frontier
The offering pushed Musk's net worth past $1 trillion. Prior to the sale, Forbes estimated his fortune at about $780 billion, far ahead of Alphabet co-founder Larry Page, whom the magazine pegged at roughly $300 billion. His SpaceX stake alone is valued at roughly $866 billion; combined with Tesla and other holdings, his wealth exceeds $1.1 trillion when the stock opens for trading.
The second richest person has been hovering around $300 billion, so about less than one-third of what Musk can potentially be worth tomorrow. And only one other person, (Oracle founder) Larry Ellison, has ever been worth $400 billion.
Valuation debate
Despite the eye-popping numbers, analysts are questioning whether the valuation is justified. SpaceX lost money last year and its revenue is dwarfed by other mega-caps. Morningstar had assigned a fair-value estimate of $63 per share, contingent on unproven Starship and orbital AI data-center technologies. The IPO price implies a multiple of about 94 times revenue, versus 22 times for Meta and 18 times for Amazon at their own debuts. Starlink's addressable market is $129 billion globally by Morningstar's count, less than 10% of the $1.6 trillion SpaceX claimed.
- SpaceX (2026)
- 75 $B
- Saudi Aramco (2019, nominal)
- 25.6 $B
- Saudi Aramco (2019, adjusted)
- 33.2 $B
Market reaction and retail push
The deal reserved 30 percent of shares for retail investors, an unusually large allocation, and the offering price was set before the traditional roadshow. Adam Sarhan of 50 Park Investments called the move balanced but urged caution.
The real test will be how the market digests the IPO over the next several weeks, not just one day. The pricing came in just about right - not too hot, not too cold. Clearly retail investors are buying and, at this stage, they are a big component of this. We need to see follow-through after the first day of trading.
A milestone for private space
Tom Mueller, SpaceX's first official employee and now founder of Impulse Space, reflected on the company's rise from early rocket failures to a successful launch in 2008.
The offering is seen as a potential catalyst for other highly valued private firms, including Anthropic and OpenAI, which have signaled plans to go public later this year.It was a truly incredible journey.
